


The Small Things

by MayLovelies



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Jealousy, M/M, Romance, Suspense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-10
Updated: 2018-06-10
Packaged: 2019-05-20 13:50:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14895771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MayLovelies/pseuds/MayLovelies
Summary: For sometime, Garak’s life on the station has been relatively uneventful and lonely. However, that changes one night when he stumbles upon an injured Julian, bleeding out in his quarters. Garak's confusion only arises when he discovers that this Julian is from the Mirror Universe.





	The Small Things

**Author's Note:**

> I've been musing with this idea for a while. I've wanted to write it so badly.

It had all started when Garak finally admitted to himself that he was in fact, lonely.  

 

Maybe it was when Dr. Bashir brushed off a lunch with him (for the third week in a row), or scoffed at the idea of letting him into a holosuite did that feeling of loneliness settle in. Or perhaps, it was when Sisko came to his office asking for reports without as much as a hello, did Garak really see what his worth was in these people’s eyes. They never asked how he felt, invited him to dinner, parties or lunches. He had often wondered, if he didn’t offer them as many skills as he did to help them fight Cardassia and the Dominion, would they even speak to him. Probably not.

 

That night, as clear as Garak remembered, was another one of the crew’s get togethers (parties) and it wasn’t a surprise to him that he wasn’t invited.  

 

As he passed by Sisko’s room, he’d heard their lively laughter and talking. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t a little saddened that he was not invited, but by now he was all to used to it. Though, he figured all he needed was a good nights sleep and he’d feel better the next morning.

  


Yet, a good night’s sleep was the least he was going to get.

 

When he entered his quarters he was met with a few stray droplets of blood, leading to a larger puddle near his bed. He paused before he continued on.

 

When Garak finally  looked forward, his eyes rested on an injured man, breathing heavy, glaring right at him.

 

“So,” he spat. “There’s another Garak in the damn universe?”

 

The cardassian had to blink--rub his eyes, and look again _harder_ at this bleeding man because he could _swear,_ he’d just passed him on the Promenade a few moments ago. Garak _saw_ the snarky doctor heading the Sisko’s quarters near twenty minutes ago.

 

So this man simply, _could not be,_ Julian Bashir. There was no way.

 

“Seems you’re as dumb as him too. What? Do you know anything about the mirror verse?”

 _Mirror Verse!_ Garak told himself, breathing a sigh of relief and regaining his composure. He had never been, but he’d heard little snippets about it from others. He never imagined he’d come in contact with someone from there.

 

“I’m the dumb one?” Garak regained his composure. “You’re the one who seems to have lost your way. You’re a _long_ way from home. Did you take a wrong turn somewhere?”

 

“Ha ha ha...” Julian grimaced sarcastically. “Are you gonna stand there? Or are you gonna help me?”

 

Garak laughed, arms crossed. “And _why_ should I help you?” There was a small part of Garak that wanted to watch him suffer. Wanted to watch him bleed out and die. Then at least, one Bashir could pay for how poorly Garak had been treated by him. However,  The thought vanished as quickly as it came, and a small wave of guilt passed over him. He sighed and approached Bashir, but remained silent when the human sat up.

 

“You can let me _die,_ and then have a problem on your hands. I’m an important rebel leader in my universe...my death could throw things off balance and it would be your fault. You could bet you’d be getting more visitors from my side, pinning my death on you.”  He grinned. “Or you could help me...and I’ll be on my way. You’ll never hear from me again.”

 

Garak paused, thinking over his options. He already had enough problems on his hands, and the last thing he needed was more people trying to kill him. And as much as an ass as this Julian was, _helping_ him would be the most reasonable thing to do. Garak inhaled deeply before he answered. “I’ll help you. But only if you start treating me with respect...see that attitude won’t due. I’m already in a bad mood” He replied . “And you’re making a mess of my carpet... I’ll alert the doctor--”

 

“No, no doctors, no medics. Do you have a first aid kit...anything, that’s all I need. I’ll be able fix myself from there.”  

 

Garak rolled his eyes and went to one of his cabinets where he had a spare kit. He tossed the kit to Bashir who ripped it open and reached for the hypo and all the available medication. Garak watched as the wounds healed, and slowly he regained his strength .

 

“You’re already more useful than the other _Garak.”_

 

“Maybe because I’m _not_ the other Garak.” He continued to look down as Julian attempted to stand. He fell however, prompting Garak to approach him. “You may have fixed your wounds, but you’re still nowhere near ready to go back to wherever you came from...Excuse me, _how_ did you get here?”

 

“With this.” Julian withdrew a device from his pocket. “But you see now it’s broken. So I _can’t_ get back.”

 

From a distance, Garak observed the object before extending his hand to take it. Cautiously, after analyzing Garak once again, Julian tossed him the cylinder like device. “You think you can fix it?”

 

Garak studied it, his eyes drifting over the crevices and buttons all around it. It was a type of portable transporter--one Garak hadn’t yet seen before. Yet the gadgets and knobs seemed easy enough to learn and manipulate. He nodded. “Give me a day or two, and you’ll be able to return home.”

 

“Until then?” Julian crossed his arms.

 

“Until then, sit there and I’ll get you some clothes.”

 

“And some food.” Julian added. “I’m starving.” He leaned back against the wall, eyes closed as Garak disappeared. His first stop was his shop where luckily he had an outfit laid out that just so happened to be Julian’s size. The colors were dark, and dull, but he didn’t think the Bashir in his room would mind. He returned to his quarters to see mirror Julian still on the floor.

 

“What, no food?”

 

“There is a replicator next to one of the closets, right there. It shouldn’t be too much trouble for you to walk over to it yourself and ask for something. And here are your clothes and...” Garak moved over to another cabinet and took out some towles. “And here are these. The bathroom is over there. Go get cleaned up and then you can help me with this mess.” Garak pointed to the floor.  

 

Julian stood, with help from Garak, and limped over to the bathroom. It was then Garak took the device and immediately started working on it. The damage wasn’t that bad--in fact, it was only burned. With a bit of rewiring and part replacements (parts that Garak had), this thing would be fixed in a little over a day. Within moments, he was buried in repairing this object.

 

As he worked, he hadn’t even heard the sound of the water shutting off.

 

It was Julian’s voice that brought him back into reality. “On our side we don’t have warm water like that.”

 

“That’s understandable--given all I hear about that side.” Garak replied, still fidgeting with the device.

 

“These clothes are just my size.” Julian said in amusement. “A perfect fit.”

 

“That’s nice, I’m glad you like them-” Garak turned around to observe his product. Naturally, he believed that Julian was clothed as he _was_ complimenting the correct sizing. However, Garak quickly turned away when he realized this man was naked--completely naked holding the apparel in his hands.

 

“May I ask why you aren’t dressed?” He responded, his eyes focusing in on the device again.

 

“What? Does it make you uncomfortable? Well, you certainly have more morals than”

 

“The other Garak, yes, I’m aware.”

 

Julian chuckled, slipping his shirt over his head and pulling up his pants. He sat on the mattress next to Garak, observing his work in silence for a few more moments. “Like I said this fits pretty well...if I would’ve known better, I’d say this was meant for someone else.”

 

Garak didn’t say anything in response but he was certain the silence said it all. “Ahh, so guessing things aren’t very well between you and this Julian. That’s something common in my universe as well.”

 

Still, the Cardassian remained silent, his flawed relationship (or lack of one) with Julian wasn’t something he wanted to talk about. He still couldn’t pinpoint why there was friction in their friendship...that outfit was his attempt at fixing whatever had gone wrong, but Julian had cancelled the lunch Garak had planned to bring it to him, so he simply decided to keep it.

 

Mirror Julian, noticing that he’d strucken a nerve cleared his throat. “If there’s one _positive_ thing about you that the ther Garak lacks it’s that you dress in brighter colors. It’s nice to see something bright...especially during time of war-”

 

“I thought the war in your universe was over.” Garak stated.

 

“If only...we still have a long way to go” He continued on. “But like I was saying, it has to be nice to see someone always dressed brightly during times like this. I bet your friends appreciate your fashion sense.”

 

Garak sighed, placing the device near his lap. “No, they don’t. Let’s just say I’m not very appreciated for things around here...unless it’s decoding Cardassian files, or hemming someone’s trousers.”  He sighed. “And I don’t usually wear bright colors anymore.”

 

“I get.” Julian groaned, and fell backward on the bed. “Well, _I_ appreciate your bright colors. I appreciate you Garak. I have a feeling I already like you more than the other Garak.”

 

Garak didn’t say a word, just tried his best to hide the smile turning on his lips (Julian had noticed, and was already snickering himself). Julian sat up, and walked over to the replicator. “How do I get this thing working again?”

 

OoOoOoOoO

 

Julian ate while Garak worked on the transporter and eventually, the two worked on cleaning the carpet together. All the while, Julian couldn’t stop talking. Garak didn’t mind however, it was nice to have someone to talk to . Someone who was actually interested in his company.  

 

After they cleaned, Julian grew tired and fell asleep on Garak’s bed. Garak himself sat in the chair opposite, still fidgeting with the object.

 

“It should be finished in the afternoon tomorrow.” Garak said as Julian stretched.

 

“Thanks, I’d like to get back as soon as possible. I pressed the wrong button, that’s why I ended up here in the first 

place.”

 

“Well try not to make the same mistake again, and perhaps, try not to get yourself bloodied up again. I won’t be there to help you.”

 

Julian laughed.

 

“I fail to see how that’s humorous.”

 

“It’s not that...I just remembered, Garak. Earlier you said you didn’t wear bright colors anymore. You should. Bright colors suit you. Good night.”

 

Garak’s mouth hovered open but he shook his head, his mind focused back on the task at hand. Yet his heart thumped, and his face began to flush.  Maybe this Julian wasn’t so bad after all.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy! Please leave kudos and comments and I will try and update soon <3


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